Mario Palermo
|sex = |location = Welland, Ontario|disappeared = December 12, 1977|missing for = |height = 5'6|weight = 150 pounds|classification = Not stated}}Mario N. Palermo was a man who disappeared from Ontario in 1977. Description Palermo was described to have brown hair and brown eyes. He also had a mustache, and a medium build at the time of his disappearance, as well as 3 moles on his face; each located down the side of his left cheek and jaw. Mario also had distinctly attached earlobes. Prior to his disappearance, Palermo was a single man living at home with his parents and 3 younger siblings. Life prior to disappearance Palermo was born in August of 1954 in Calabria, Catanzaro, Italy, approximately two years before immigrating with his parents to Canada. They settled down in Welland, Ontario, and while in elementary school, Palermo joined the Welland School Safety Patrol (1967). Mario graduated from high school in June of 1972, and later attended McMaster University in Hamilton, and then Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, where he would soon spend most of his time in the summer of 1976-77. Mario was also part of the Governor Generals' Foot Guards (3rd division, Public Duties Detachment) in the same time period, and at one point, had gone to CFB Petawawa to complete his basic training (BMQ). Prior to his disappearance in late 1977, and after returning home for a short period, Mario had also been working in Welland amongst Niagara College's Theater program at Sacred Heart Church, located on Empire Street, in Downtown Welland, working as a set designer. He was familiar with, and often relied on using public transportation and hitchhiking to make his way from city to city, and at one point, took shelter at the YMCA of Hamilton. He wore upscale clothing, and wasn't your average 'transient' traveler. He typically wore wool Levis' Panatela pants, and button-up dress shirts. He was known to also wear Hushpuppies brand dress shoes, size 9 (US/Canada). Palermo was also known to have a high IQ, and family states that he had an introvert personality type. Mario had obtained a slip of paper from a pharmacy in Welland, Ontario, documenting a prescription he had received from a doctor in October 1977, about a month before his disappearance, for the pharmaceutical drug named chloral hydrate 500mg (prescribed as a sedative to help combat insomnia). At the time that the slip was printed, the prescription still contained 2 refills, and it is unknown whether they had ever been fulfilled or not. Theories He may be Markham Doe He may be Hamilton John Doe (1978) Case The last time Palermo was seen alive was December 12, 1977. At the time of his disappearance, he was not carrying any identification. When he left, he took a brown Dionite suitcase with him, and he was wearing a dark red and brown (tartan patterned) pair of Panatela wool pants. He usually kept a pocketknife in his pants' pocket for protection, encased in a vinyl/leather sheath. On his day of disappearance, he had left Welland to visit his best friend in Hamilton, and that day, asked for a ride to the city's Greyhound bus depot, where Palermo had ominously stated to his friend that he would "never see him again", and needed to "take care of business", before saying goodbye. His destination is unknown. The last time anyone heard from Palermo was January 8, 1978, when his mother received a'' Grey Coach'' parcel from Orillia, Ontario, containing a pair of boots that Palermo borrowed from his brother and two boxes of chocolates. Palermo was reported missing by his mother on January 20, 1978. In late 2009, Detective Constable Douglas Clarke of York Regional Police's Homicide department had paid a visit to the home of Petronilla Palermo (mother), and formerly, that of Mario's, and had informed the family that he was investigating a lead, which had been an unidentified case by the name of "Markham Doe", and that Mario may have been the decedent in question. Petronilla had subsequently submitted a DNA sample for analysis (which is still available), and after being tested, the results were negative. As of March 6th, 2019, an enquiry began as to whether or not there is a possibility that Mario Palermo's case may match with that of "Hamilton John Doe". The investigation is still ongoing. Gallery LastknownpicMarioPalermo76.png MarioPalermo69.png 6ea53e356eced90ddf9c52f535299b05.jpg|Pair of Levis Panatela pants, similar to what Palermo had been wearing the day he left home. download.jpg|Dionite carry-on suitcase/travel bag, similar to the one Mario had left home with. Links * }} * NCMPUR Category:Ties to Italy Category:1977 disappearances Category:Missing people from Ontario Category:1950s births Category:Young adults Category:Cases over 40 years old Category:Possible transients Category:Possible hitchhikers